Panasonic to cut 5,000 workers from automotive and industrial division

(Reuters) - Panasonic Corp said it will cut around 5,000 workers from its automotive and industrial division in a bid to bolster its operating profit margin over the next three years to a 5 per cent minimum set by the company's president, Mr Kazuhiko Tsuga.

The division, which covers automotive components, semiconductors, production machinery and other devices, employs 110,000 people, around a third of Panasonic's workforce. The business is at the forefront of Mr Tsuga's strategy to shift Panasonic away from consumer electronics to building gadgets and machinery it sells to other companies.

"A reduction in labour costs will be a big part of our plan to improve profitability," Mr Yoshihiko Yamada, the head of the automotive and industrial division said during a presentation to analysts and investors in Tokyo.